“Alena darling, can you come downstairs?” cried mum. My mum was a woman in her 40’s but looked quite younger than that. She had an attractive face and golden hair. She was also a great cook.
I came hopping down the stairs and went into the kitchen. “Yes mum! What is it?” I asked a bit curiously. “I want you to go into the forest and collect some apples for me. I’m thinking of baking an apple pie but we don’t have any apples. Collect at least a dozen. And Alena, please be careful. I wouldn’t have sent you but as none of your brothers is home, I have no choice,” mum said, tearing up. I went over and gave her a big hug and a kiss on the forehead.
Mum smiled and gave me a basket. Just then, I felt something wet on my foot. Looking down, I saw Scout, our black labrador, licking my toes. “Scout, you silly dog! Want to go out on an adventure?” I asked, scratching his ears. He barked loudly, wagging his tail.
I felt a surge of self-confidence and went out the door. “It’s going to be quite an experience, huh, Scout?” I asked Scout who was trotting by my side. Little did I know the unexpected things I would discover.
I walked into the forest and was dazed by its unblemished aroma. I started picking out the reddest apples from the trees. When I found that I had collected more than enough apples, I turned around to head home but found that I was no longer on the edge of the forest, but had wandered right into the heart of it.
“Scout! I don’t know where we are! Can you lead us out of here?” I asked my dog meekly, getting an affirmative bark. He started sniffing the ground. Suddenly, he stopped in front of a tree and started growling at it. “What’s the matter, boy? Is there something wrong?” I inquired nervously .
There, right in front of us, was something that looked like cotton-candy. It was white, had wings and big black eyes. I got scared and backed away. The weird furry creature flew towards me and softly brushed its face against mine. This made me more curious than afraid of the animal. I gently patted its head. It let out a small sound, which sounded like a purr. It then blew fire from its mouth aiming for the grass below it. “Ahh!!!” I cried out and that was when I realised that the adorable little creature must be the fire breathing snow dragon the villagers always said was a myth.
“You are such a cute animal, you know that,” I marvelled, scratching his ears as it landed on the burnt grass. Scout slowly approached it and they instantly became friends.
“You must be so lonely here! I promise I will keep coming back but I need to go now. My mother must be getting worried about me. I think I’ll call you ‘Cuddles’,” I said to the curious dragon. I got up, hugged Cuddles and started to follow Scout back towards home.
“Oh, Alena! You made me so worried! Are you okay?” my mum inquired as soon as I got home, taking me into a tight embrace. “I am fine mum! Really! And I actually made a new friend,” I narrated the whole story with many ‘oohs’ and ‘wows’ coming from mum. “So, I will be going to meet Cuddles quite often now, that is, if you allow.” I said with puppy dog eyes. After some if’s and but’s, she finally agreed.
I decided that I would take some of the leftover pie for Cuddles the following day. That night, I dreamt about the surprisingly tiny snow dragon, whom if I hadn’t met, I wouldn’t have believed in.
